Short Courses & Upskilling Learning Units (ULUs)
The Centre for Learning Technologies (CLT) is committed to creating professional learning opportunities for staff in their efforts to meaningfully include learning technology into their courses for students. The Centre offers two accredited short courses in Blended Learning, which provide a community of practice where staff members can further develop knowledge in the theoretical and practical aspects of technology-mediated teaching, learning and assessment. These short courses are offered free to staff members.
The Learning Technology Support (LTS) team in the Centre also provides a basic training session on the use of SUNLearn and/or other University-supported software.
Course offerings:
- DEC Student-focused AI in Higher Education training course
- DEC for Lecturers, Administrators, Leaders and Students
- AI in Higher Education
- Introduction to Blended Teaching, Learning and Assessment
- Advanced Blended Teaching, Learning and Assessment
Read more about CLT's available courses, training or support below.
Contact
Short Course | Student-focused AI in Higher Education training
AI Literacy for all (±4 hours of learning)
Stellenbosch University is offering you free access to AI Literacy for All, a globally recognised course developed by the Digital Education Council. A foundational course designed to rapidly equip students with key knowledge and practical skills to navigate the impact of AI in their studies and career. If you are interested in completing the course, please click here and follow the sign-up process.
Please note that you will have to sign up using your @sun.ac.za email address. Once you submitted the form access to the courses will be granted within 24-48 business hours. Any questions about this offering? Please submit a ticket at: https://learnhelp.sun.ac.za
This course is free to all SU staff and students.
After completion of the course, the participants will be able to:
- Understand key AI concepts;
- Learn how to evaluate AI output;
- Enhance critical thinking and creativity for AI;
- Embrace ethical AI in academia and workplace
Topic 1: AI Literacy Fundamentals
Topic 2: Best Practices for Prompting
Topic 3: Evaluating AI Output
Topic 4: Critical Thinking and Creativity in the Age of AI
Topic 5: Ethics of AI and Respecting Academic Integrity
Topic 6: Preparing for an AI-Driven Workforce
- Fully online
- Self-paced
- On-demand learning
Students must register using their @sun.ac.za email address.
Once the sign-up form has been submitted, access to the course will be granted within 24–48 business hours.
This course is free to all SU students.
After successful completion, the participant will receive an official short course certificate.
- No fixed start or end dates
- Enrolment is open throughout the year of 2026
- Course access is available for approximately 90 days from the date access is granted.
- Students may re-request access if needed after this period.
Short Course | For Lecturers, Administrators, Leaders and Students
Certificate in AI for Higher Education (±20 hours of learning)
We are pleased to announce that Stellenbosch University is offering you free access to the Certificate in AI for Higher Education, a globally recognised course developed by the Digital Education Council. This course is designed to equip you with practical AI knowledge and skills relevant to academic, teaching, and administrative contexts.
If you are interested in completing the course, please click here and follow the sign-up process. Please note that you will have to sign up using your @sun.ac.za email address. Once you submitted the form access to the courses will be granted within 24-48 business hours. Any questions about this offering? Please submit a ticket at: https://learnhelp.sun.ac.za
This course is free to all SU staff and students.
After completion of the course, the participants will be able to:
- Analyse the impact of AI on higher education
Examine how AI is reshaping teaching, learning, assessment, and administrative practices, including implications for academic integrity, quality assurance, and resource optimisation. - Leverage AI to improve institutional outcomes and efficiency
Identify and apply AI-enabled approaches to personalise learning, streamline processes, and support evidence-informed decision making across academic and professional contexts. - Develop practical AI strategies for institutional contexts
Design contextually appropriate and actionable AI strategies aligned with institutional goals, digital infrastructure, governance frameworks, and stakeholder needs. - Apply principles of ethical and responsible AI adoption
Navigate ethical considerations related to AI use, including data privacy, transparency, fairness, and accountability, to support trustworthy and responsible implementation across the institution.
Topic 1: AI Fundamentals
Topic 2: Use Cases of AI in Higher Education
Topic 3: Implementing AI in Your Organisation
Topic 4: AI Governance and Responsible Practices
Topic 5: Specialty Electives
- Fully online
- Self-paced
- On-demand learning
Participants can complete the course independently, at a pace that suits their professional context and workload.
- Staff must register using their @sun.ac.za email address.
- Once the sign-up form has been submitted, access to the course will be granted within 24–48 business hours.
- Course access is available for approximately 90 days from the date access is granted.
- Access may be re-requested if required after this period.
For support or enrolment queries, please submit a ticket via:
https://learnhelp.sun.ac.za
This course is free to all SU staff.
After successful completion, the participant will receive an official short course certificate.
- No fixed start or end dates
- Enrolment is open throughout the year
- Access to the course will be available for at least the current academic year (2026)
ULUs | AI in Higher Education
The release of easily accessible generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) models is disrupting the higher education (HE) landscape, necessitating a rethink of HE's purpose and goals. It is also necessitating that lecturers reevaluate their students' learning and its assessment, and reconsider their roles as university teachers in the age of AI.
These five ULUs on AI in HE allow SU academics to reimagine and adapt their teaching, learning and assessment (TLA) strategies and practices to critically explore the affordances and limitations of generative AI in HE within a framework of academic integrity.
After completion of the ULUs, the participants will be able to:
- Explore and articulate various perspectives on human interactions with machines through the lens of AI literacies.
- Critically assess student learning processes and identify how generative AI can facilitate deeper engagement and understanding, supporting the concept of "grappling as learning."
- Reposition assessment strategies to support learning and foster evaluative judgment in an AI-enhanced educational landscape.
- Evaluate the opportunities and challenges of integrating AI technologies into various teaching practices, aiming to enrich pedagogical approaches.
- Advocate for a values-based approach, highlighting the importance of ethical considerations and responsible AI use in education.
The maximum hours that a participant could expect to spend on a ULU are 4 hours.
Click on the individual registration links above (under "Topics") to enrol via SUN e-HR. Once access is manually granted, CLT will email you your enrolment details.
These ULUs are available to complete throughout the year at your own time and pace.
ULUs | Introduction to Blended Teaching, Learning and Assessment
Stellenbosch University (SU) uses the term ‘Blended Learning’ to refer to the application of technologies to support teaching, learning and assessment practices. This series of introductory ULUs aims to help teaching staff critically analyse and implement blended learning approaches effectively to support student learning.
Each ULU is open for one year and can be completed at your own time and pace. You will receive a SUNLearn badge for each ULU completed and a document of completion for completing one whole series of ULUs.
After completion of the ULUs, the participants will be able to:
- Describe the field of educational technology;
- Apply the theoretical grounding of Blended Learning;
- Apply their developed practical and context-specific skills in the integration of learning technologies into the curriculum; and
- Explain the concept of e-assessment and how to apply it in an assessment strategy.
Click on the ULU topic to register:
The maximum hours that a participant could expect to spend on a ULU are 3 hours.
Click on the individual registration links above (under "Topics") to enrol via SUN e-HR. Once access is manually granted, CLT will email you your enrolment details.
These ULUs are available to complete throughout the year at your own time and pace.
ULUs | Advanced Blended Teaching, Learning and Assessment
To advance our Blended Learning approaches, we incorporate Diana Laurillard's Six Ways of Learning (2012) as pedagogical strategies. This series of more advanced ULUs aims to improve learning activities by testing and applying learning technologies that support 1) knowledge acquisition, 2) collaboration, 3) discussion, 4) investigation, 5) practice and 6) production.
Each ULU is open for one year and can be completed at your own time and pace. You will receive a SUNLearn badge for each ULU completed and a document of completion for completing one whole series of ULUs.
After completion of the ULUs, the participants will be able to:
- Analyse the pedagogical strategies of Laurillard's Six Ways of Learning;
- Search, assess and use up-to-date learning technologies in order to improve their teaching; and
- Design, develop and implement meaningful learning experiences in order to activate learning.
Click on the ULU topic to register:
The maximum hours that a participant could expect to spend on a ULU are 3 hours.
Click on the individual registration links above (under "Topics") to enrol via SUN e-HR. Once access is manually granted, CLT will email you your enrolment details.
ULUs are available to complete throughout the year at your own time and pace.
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